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This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 97/5/3193    most recent 00018.2007v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Web of Science (14) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Alvarado, J. C. Articles by Stein, B. E. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Alvarado, J. C. Articles by Stein, B. E.

Multisensory Versus Unisensory Integration: Contrasting Modes in the Superior Colliculus

Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Submitted 5 January 2007; accepted in final form 26 February 2007

The present study suggests that the neural computations used to integrate information from different senses are distinct from those used to integrate information from within the same sense. Using superior colliculus neurons as a model, it was found that multisensory integration of cross-modal stimulus combinations yielded responses that were significantly greater than those evoked by the best component stimulus. In contrast, unisensory integration of within-modal stimulus pairs yielded responses that were similar to or less than those evoked by the best component stimulus. This difference is exemplified by the disproportionate representations of superadditive responses during multisensory integration and the predominance of subadditive responses during unisensory integration. These observations suggest that different rules have evolved for integrating sensory information, one (unisensory) reflecting the inherent characteristics of the individual sense and, the other (multisensory), unique supramodal characteristics designed to enhance the salience of the initiating event.

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